Just as it is beoming more difficult to qualify for a mortage, mortgage interest rates are coming down, the Telegraaf reported on Wednesday. Mortgage adviser Hypotheekshop said that after mortgage interest rates were lowered by Rabobank and Munt, other big providers are expected to follow suit, the paper said. Interest rates on the capital market, which largely determine the mortgage rate, have dropped from over 0.6% to less than 0.5% in recent weeks. This works its way down to individual mortgages, Hypotheekshop said. Seasonal influences are also coming into play. June is traditionally the month when many new mortgages are agreed and mortgage providers become more competitive as a result, Hypotheekshop pointed out.   More >

If the rules for handing out mortgages in the Netherlands get any tougher, two-thirds of first-time buyers will have to delay their home-owning plans, the government's macro-economic think tank CPB said on Tuesday. From next year, mortgages cannot exceed 100% of the value of the property, meaning buyers must have considerable savings to pay the fees associated with buying a home and for renovation work. However, various organisations, including the Dutch central bank, have called for a reduction in the maximum mortgage to 90% of the value of the property. This, the CPB calculates, would rule out two-thirds of potential buyers. The 100% limit will force half of first-time buyers to put their plans on hold. Not only will first-time buyers have to wait up to five years to buy a home, but they will have to live in more expensive rental property while doing so, which will also eat into potential savings, the CPB said. The government has said it has no plans to reduce the maximum mortgage to under the 100% limit.  More >

The number of people moving house in the Netherlands rose to a record 1.8 million in 2016, the national statistics office CBS said on Friday. About 300,000 more people moved home last year than in 2016 and the trend continued into the first quarter of 2017, the CBS said. The number of people moving last year was the highest in 40 years. The CBS noted that the housing market began its recovery in 2013.  More >

A group of tenants in The Hague have managed to buy 65 houses in their street from a housing corporation which had planned to demolish their 100-year-old homes. Broadcaster NOS said it is the first time that tenants have acted together to buy so many properties in one go. It took them three years and €2.5m to make their dream a reality. The Hague city council had a hand in the deal and the corporation, Haag Wonen, agreed to slash the price of the properties by 50% to make it possible. The residents have now set up their own housing association and will pay rent - averaging €485 a month - into its bank account. A spokesman for Haag Wonen said the deal would 'contribute to cohesion in the neighbourhood'. 'We could not finance the necessary repairs, hence the plan to demolish the properties,' a spokesman said. 'The residents will probably be able to carry out the repairs more cheaply.'   More >